Sensors (Dec 2022)

A Tiled Ultrasound Matrix Transducer for Volumetric Imaging of the Carotid Artery

  • Djalma Simões dos Santos,
  • Fabian Fool,
  • Moein Mozaffarzadeh,
  • Maysam Shabanimotlagh,
  • Emile Noothout,
  • Taehoon Kim,
  • Nuriel Rozsa,
  • Hendrik J. Vos,
  • Johan G. Bosch,
  • Michiel A. P. Pertijs,
  • Martin D. Verweij,
  • Nico de Jong

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/s22249799
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 22, no. 24
p. 9799

Abstract

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High frame rate three-dimensional (3D) ultrasound imaging would offer excellent possibilities for the accurate assessment of carotid artery diseases. This calls for a matrix transducer with a large aperture and a vast number of elements. Such a matrix transducer should be interfaced with an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) for channel reduction. However, the fabrication of such a transducer integrated with one very large ASIC is very challenging and expensive. In this study, we develop a prototype matrix transducer mounted on top of multiple identical ASICs in a tiled configuration. The matrix was designed to have 7680 piezoelectric elements with a pitch of 300 μm × 150 μm integrated with an array of 8 × 1 tiled ASICs. The performance of the prototype is characterized by a series of measurements. The transducer exhibits a uniform behavior with the majority of the elements working within the −6 dB sensitivity range. In transmit, the individual elements show a center frequency of 7.5 MHz, a −6 dB bandwidth of 45%, and a transmit efficiency of 30 Pa/V at 200 mm. In receive, the dynamic range is 81 dB, and the minimum detectable pressure is 60 Pa per element. To demonstrate the imaging capabilities, we acquired 3D images using a commercial wire phantom.

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